


Within Palace Walls

by nastymajesty



Category: Splatoon
Genre: F/F, Octo Expansion Spoilers, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Recovery, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-14
Updated: 2019-04-01
Packaged: 2019-06-27 04:01:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 19,306
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15677628
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nastymajesty/pseuds/nastymajesty
Summary: After many difficult battles and gruesome tests, Agent Eight finally escaped Kamabo's Deep Sea Metro and saved the world in the process. Now she's tired, and confused, and has to try and survive as an adult in a world completely new to her. And even with Pearl and Marina's help, she finds it almost impossible to adjust to the world she only thought existed in works of fiction.But before she can teach herself anything, she wants to do whatever she can to befriend Agent Three.





	1. For even if she flees, soon she shall pursue.

**Author's Note:**

> Just a quick heads up: my username is no longer rabbitpxl, and I've changed it to nastymajesty.  
> Also! This fic isn't spoiler free. It's riddled with them. And a warning for vomit near the end, it starts at "She was hyperventilating at this point..." and ends at "'Well uh,'" in case that bothers you. Enjoy!  
> Edit: Fixed a lot of grammar mistakes and such, thank you frostie for helping!!

Agent Eight carefully tiptoed back on to the train. Inside, there were several sleeping passengers, so she tried to be courteous as to not disturb them. Those who were awake were doing the same as she could hear whispers at the end of the cart. She recognized the faint voices as Iso Padre and CQ Cumber’s. She had no idea how long she had been doing that test for, but it felt like hours since she had seen the Metro’s train. She had lost track of time down here. When was the last time she even slept? Or eaten, perhaps? Was there anywhere she could eat? She saw strange boxes in the central station containing bottles of liquid and packages of what she could only assume - or what she hoped - was food, but she had no idea how to access them or if they were even safe. 

The rush of adrenaline she had before left her body, now being overtaken by a sudden fatigue and weakness. Her legs felt like jelly, her hands began to shake, and she began to feel a splitting pain strike through her forehead. She felt the train move again, but it felt more like someone had pulled a rug from under her feet, making her topple forward. Fortunately, she managed to grab the pole next to her, and she clinged to it for dear life so she wouldn’t topple forward. Instinctively, one of her tentacles wrapped around her wrist.

“Agent Eight?” Her ears perked up and she moved her head towards the source, wincing at the pain from her headache. The pain almost felt cold.

“Agent Eight, when was the last time you ate?” The voice asked. Blinking a few times at what was in front of her and attempting to stand up straight, she realized the voice came from Captain Cuttlefish with an air of concern.

“A… A while,” The octoling managed to mumble. Cuttlefish patted the seat next to him, and she ever so carefully took the spot, cupping her head in her hands. “I don’t know how long it’s even been.”

“You’ve been testing since you have arrived on our train, miss.” Eight turned her head, realizing CQ Cumber had joined the conversation. “You began riding with us this morning and have done a total of 6 tests, with the last one taking most of the day. It’s very late at night now.”

Eight groaned, rubbing her temples. 

“Young Squire,” Another voice joined in, this time Iso Padre’s. “There is a diner and small motel nearby that past subjects often went to, just a little way through Central Station. I can take you there so you can get the rest you need.”

Lifting her head, the octoling pulled her CQ-80 out of her backpack and paused. Her card had plenty of money on it, yes, but she also needed a lot of it for tests. She could easily find rations instead…

“How much would it cost?” She inquired, still very unsure of herself. 

“Nothing at all. I’ll pay for you, you’ve done very well so far and deserve it.”

Eight gulped, not knowing if she should accept the offer or not. She glanced at her CQ-80 and back to the isopod. With a defeated sigh, she nodded and turned the device on, carefully selecting the metro’s central station. She felt the train stop for a moment before suddenly moving again, making her jolt.

She felt someone nudge her shoulder, turning to see Captain Cuttlefish glaring daggers at her. She responded with a puzzled look, unsure of what to do or say, before it struck her,

“O-oh! I’m sorry, my manners,” The octoling squeaked. “Uhm, thank you so much, Mister Padre.”

The isopod chuckled. “It’s nothing at all, Young Squire.”

Eight smiled, a genuine smile she wasn’t even sure she was able to do for the first time in hours, or perhaps even days. She reached back into her bag to put her CQ-80 back, and pulled out a mem cake. 

“I found this after my last test, if you want to see it.” She mumbled, passing the small cake to Iso Padre, who examined it eagerly. It was in the shape of an octarian, smiling brightly like there was nothing in the world to ever worry about. The memories it brought her were vague and blurry, but made her feel a deep saudade. While she was sure things would become more clear later, she was satisfied with what it had given her now. She wasn’t even sure if she was ready to remember everything just yet, as this one cake had made an overwhelming sense of melancholy pass though her heart; she thought it was going to burst just thinking about it too much.

“Lovely job once again,” He commended, handing the cake back after inspecting it. “You’ve already collected far more than I ever did.”

Eight’s ears drooped downwards. Iso Padre was one of the kindest people she’s met in the metro so far, and she couldn’t help but sympathize for him. His memories were torn from him just like they were to her, but he never got them back, instead being forced to create new ones with the denizens of the deep. Would she have to suffer the same fate?

She decided it would be best not to dwell on the idea. Negativity wouldn’t do her any good, not in a situation like this. She let the mem cake rest between her index finger and her thumb, careful as to not let her sharp claws stab the object, and leaned back with shut eyes. Inhaling the stuffy train air, she let her thumb trace the sides of it, memorizing its shape. The sides of it were smooth, unlike the rough and glittery face, and simply stroking the texture was an oddly calming action.

The octoling felt the train slow to a stop. When it stilled, she heard a distant voice welcome her to the central station, though she could hardly understand it through the half broken speakers and foreign language. She carefully put the mem cake away and double checked for her belongings before standing up with Iso Padre. 

“Just follow me, Young Squire,” He said, leading her off the train with a few other passengers. They all left in different directions, some in groups and some by themselves, leaving Iso Padre and Eight alone. He motioned her to follow him.

They walked past The Telephone - something that gave Eight an awful gut feeling, but she tried to ignore it - and towards the end of the large, vacant room. He stopped at the end of it, just at the edge of the tracks.

“Hold my claw,” he said gently, holding one of his many appendages out to her. With a raised brow, she carefully took it. It was cold and smooth, but somehow, this action made her feel safe.

The isopod looked both ways - Eight wasn’t very sure what he was doing, but copied the motion nonetheless - and carefully guided her across the train’s tracks and to the other side of the central station. “There we are. The diner shouldn’t be very far now.”

He lead her through another dark tunnel, that then lead to a few strange alleys that she hadn’t seen before. The alleys slowly became wider and wider, and eventually, they opened up to what looked like a small town. It was dark and strange, but at the same time it reminded her of her home - being underground and full of artificial light and all. It was an odd mix of train station vendors and store buildings, with everything close together. Unlike her home back in Octo Valley, however, many of these shops and buildings were decorated with flickering neon lights and signs advertising their businesses.

Eight wondered if the surface would be this interesting.

After turning a few more corners and alleys of varied lightings, Iso Padre stopped in front of a small, dimly lit restaurant. Eight curiously peered through the windows - it looked comfortable, unlike most of the rundown places in the metro. The walls were covered in a colourful floral pattern, the booths had comfortable red and blue seats, the tables and chairs varied in colours. It appeared to be almost empty aside from a few other denizens. Realizing that Iso Padre was waiting for her at the door, she turned and muttered an apology. The isopod only chuckled and opened the door for Eight, politely letting her inside first.

Now inside, she noticed the floor was covered in a strange checker pattern, and the ceiling was a light blue with orb-like lights hanging down. It was far bigger than she expected. Across from the door they just entered was a counter and several seats, and behind it was a lively eel that greeted them - or more specifically, greeting Iso Padre. They seemed to already be acquainted with each other.

“Hey hey, who’s your tentacled pal here?” The eel half-shouted, earning him a glare from a jellyfish across the room that he either didn’t notice or didn’t acknowledge. 

Eight tried to squeak out a response, but nothing came through. She had to admit, she was nervous being here - she didn’t trust the metro very much, and besides Iso Padre, many of the denizens of the deep haven’t been the kindest to her. Thankfully, her isopod friend had her back.

“Ah, this is Agent Eight. She’s trying to get to the promised land.” He said, making his way to one of the center tables in which Eight followed close.

“Another one, eh?” The eel nodded. “Good luck to ya, then, Missus Eight. It’s a tough job, gettin’ to the promised land.”

Eight nodded. “T-thank you, I’m doing my best.”

Another eel, draped in a flowery apron with the diner’s logo on it, slithered forward and placed a menu in front of the two. “What can I do for you tonight?”

“I’ll have my usual, thank you. And some water for both of us,” Iso Padre responded, his many arms crossed as he relaxed.

Eight gazed at the menu for a whole minute, trying to decipher the text and food. Fortunately for Eight, the menu was in clear octarian — unfortunately, she’s never really been to any kind of restaurant before, let alone one from a foreign land like this, and is quickly overwhelmed with the options she had and couldn’t figure out.

The eel was about to turn and come back later when Eight made a hasty decision. “Oh! I’ll just, uh, have what Mister Iso Padre is having, please.”

“Are you sure, Young Squire? It’s quite the big burger,” The isopod warned.

“Y-yes, that’s fine,” Eight replied, unaware of what he was talking about exactly. “I’m… really hungry anyways. I could eat a whole seahorse.”

Iso Padre chuckled. “Very well. She’ll have what I’m having, then.”

The waiter hummed and nodded, taking the menus from them and making his way to the kitchen a few feet away, muttering something about how long their food may take. Eight decided to take this time to further examine her surroundings. 

She noticed a few new things now, upon closer inspection: first, there were several televisions, oddly modern ones, mounted onto the walls showcasing different programs starring the deep sea denizens. The restaurant was also very clean, and seemed to have a strange hospital smell instead of a fresh food related one like she expected — but with all the iv drips she saw before, just laying around the station, she wasn’t  _ too _ surprised by this. 

The second thing she noticed was around the corner, a few feet away from the door the waiter disappeared in. She couldn’t see it very well, but what with what she could gather it seemed to be a bar of some kind, for older visitors of the diner. It was very different from the rest of the building, with dark colours and dim lights. It also looked a bit dirty. Was that ink on some of the ceiling's corners she could see? No no, just cobwebs. There must not be many drinkers down here.

Not that many, but perhaps one.

The third thing Agent Eight noticed was the sanitized octoling sitting at a table in the bar area - just barely in her line of vision. The octoling had a hat on, and more casual clothing compared to the octolings she fought during her tests, sporting a loose top, a slap bracelet, and a pair of jeans and converse.

Eight froze. Casual-looking or not, that was still a sanitized octoling. And Eight didn’t have a weapon, or a place to run, or —

“Young Squire,” A voice interrupted, pulling her back into reality. “You look pale. What’s perplexing you?”

Eight shook her head, pretending she didn’t see anything. Unfortunately, Iso Padre didn’t believe this, and his eyes trailed towards where she was looking a few seconds ago. Her tentacles curled inwards anxiously.

“Ah. I see...” Was all he said, nodding. There was a pause, as he seemed to gather his thoughts, before placing a gentle claw on the girl’s shoulder.

“No worries, little one. That Octoling can’t do you any harm.”

Eight tilted her head. Sure, the other octoling didn’t look like it, but…

Iso Padre chuckled and continued. “She was once a test subject here as well, a very, very long time ago. Before even I had tried myself. Unfortunately, she had given up, and decided to live here instead. She now makes the music you hear in your tests or around the station. She is no fighter, just a musician. She goes by Dedf1sh.”

Eight blinked. Given up? That was.. A sad fate, in her opinion. She had a difficult time believing it as well, considering the other’s physical state. Eight decided that wasn’t really any of her business, though. She trusted Iso Padre.

Her train of thought was interrupted by a cough. Shaking her head back into reality, she realized her food had arrived. Their waiter was standing next to her, with a plate of food on his head, waiting for her to take it. She muttered an apology and thank you before taking the plate, careful as to not hurt herself on its hot touch.

Her food was massive, just like the isopod had warned, but she didn’t care. She couldn’t remember the last time she ate, let alone looked at food, and she was starving. The burger sat on the plate, its scent wafting through the fresh steam that carried into the air. Its patty was fat and juicy and the cheese melted down to the bun, similar to molasses. Stacked between the patty and the buns was a variety of toppings such as fresh lettuce, tomatoes, mayonnaise, ketchup, and a mysterious sauce Eight wasn’t sure she’s seen before. Thinking back to what she ate at the valley, this was a luxury meal compared to the rations. She lifted the burger up to her mouth and took a hesitant bite, but as soon as the flavours reached her tongue, she began to scarf it down as if someone were to take it away from her at any moment.

Iso Padre laughed, amused by the girl’s urgency. “Slow down, Young Squire. You’ll get yourself sick.”

Eight blinked a few times, laughing nervously. She slowly put her food back on it’s plate and used a napkin to dab it’s juices off her face and fingers, then picked it up again and ate at a slower, more refined pace. She found this to be a better method anyways, as she could now savour each delicious bite of the burger and enjoy every second of it.

The two ate in relative peace for a few minutes, the silence only being filled by the soft hum of a distant television, the cheery diner music, and the sounds of chewing and plates shuffling in the kitchen.

Eight didn’t even notice the footsteps of someone approaching their table until she heard the sound of a chair being pulled back and someone sitting right next to her.

It was the other Octoling.

Eight and panicked, nearly choking on her food in the process. She gave Iso Padre a confused yet pleading look, to which he responded with an oddly reassuring nod. Did she ask to sit down with them and she just didn’t hear? She could have sworn she would have noticed if she did.

Eight, unsure what to do, went back go eating and did her best to ignore the sanitized girl next to her. From the corner of her eyes, she noticed that Dedf1sh’s tentacles didn’t move at all, - unlike Eight’s, who’s swayed and curled and were just as expressive as her face. The other girl didn’t move or speak, and she swore she wasn’t even  _ breathing _ . Eight turned her head away and pretended to watch one of the TVs so she could have some kind of excuse not to make eye contact, but she could feel the other octoling’s eyes searing holes into the back of her head.

With her hands shaking she felt sick and scared, but after almost 20 anxiety filled minutes she finished all her food and was ready to leave as fast as she could.

“All done?” Iso Padre inquired, having finished his meal a few minutes before she did. Eight nodded, still pretending not to see the Sanitized DJ next to her. 

Iso Padre sat up and made his way towards the counter to pay a bill, leaving the anxious Agent Eight with Dedf1sh. Eight decided to busy herself and clean up their plates the most she could so she could avoid potential small talk, but that never came. The other octoling did nothing but sit and stare, almost completely unmoving besides a few head movements. 

Eight gulped, but Iso Padre finally returned and beckoned her over to the door to make their leave. She nodded eagerly and whipped around, only to feel something grab her wrist. Something cold, without a pulse.

She froze for the 3rd time this night. Turning her head ever so slowly, she made what she could only assume was eye contact with the DJ - who was gripping her wrist tightly, but not enough to hurt her, and stared.

She opened her mouth and uttered one word with her strained voice, loosening her grip on Eight’s wrist.

“Careful.”

 

___

 

They had been fighting for hours now. Eight was exhausted beyond belief.

As soon as the elevator stopped, her gut wrenched. She knew something was wrong when she heard shuffling and shouting over her earpiece on her way to the surface. She knew something was wrong when the elevator stopped, and everything went dead silent, including Pearl and Marina. She knew something was wrong and she knew she should have taken a step back to investigate, but she pushed on anyways, and now here she is, fighting the strongest inkling in existence and risking death to do so. And while the inkling wasn’t technically herself right now, Eight now understood why so many people in the valley feared Agent 3.

She was losing a lot of blood, but her adrenaline kept her going. The wound on her back was open, and she had several claw marks and bruises all over her body (she wished she brought her null armour with her, she wished she listened to her gut). Her nose had finally stopped bleeding, leaving a dry and bloody mess on her face, but she knew it wouldn’t last long at this pace.

She heard a bomb being tossed in her direction and hastily rolled out of the way, hiding behind a box to catch her breath. She gripped her Octoshot as if her life depended on it - her life  _ did  _ depend on it - and listened to the sound of the inkling’s growling as she regained turf. She was waiting for Eight to come out.

“You’ve almost got her, Eight,” Marina whispered over her earpiece, even though it’d be impossible for Three to hear her if she spoke at a normal volume. “You’re so close. She’s weak.”

_ So am I, _ Eight thought, but didn’t dare say out loud and risk Three hearing.

Another bomb tossed in her direction, and she panicked and scurried out of the way. She was quick to regain her balance and stand up, but didn’t expect the inkling to be a few inches away from her. For a moment, Eight made eye contact with her glassy, unnatural green eyes. _ Shit. _

Eight noticed how little of the goo is still left on the other’s face and aims, but in the process she left herself open - and Three, with a snarl, tackled her to the ground. Eight’s gun flew out of her hands and a few feet away with a loud clunk, echoing throughout the whole elevator room.

Eight panicked and tried to shove Three away, but she had one hand pinning her down by the wrist and her hero shot to her throat. She was growling, like an angry animal, ready to shoot any second now. Eight grabbed the other’s wrist with her free hand and managed to push the gun away from her, but the inkling was strong and this only made her more furious. The two struggled for control, close enough to each other that Eight could feel Three’s ragged breathing, but she was weak and in pain - she was going to die here.

Then her fight or flight instincts kicked in. She didn’t have much of a choice left, and without much thought, she shut her eyes and slammed her forehead against the other’s with as much brute force as she could muster. 

Three yelped, gripping her head in pain. While she was muttering curses, Eight used this time to lift her legs and knee her in the stomach, making the inkling grunt and stumble off of her and onto her bum.

Eight scurried backwards, not taking her eye off of the other, and reached for her weapon. 

“Eight, Eight,” She heard Pearl shout, “The goop is gone, it’s A-OK, she’s free now.” Eight relaxed, but only slightly.

The octoling gulped, sitting still and keeping her gaze trained on the inkling, who was a few feet away and coughing aggressively like something was caught in her chest. She repositioned herself onto her knees and crawled forward, afraid yet curious about the other’s state. Her ink colour had changed back to a dark orange, and she was shaking violently. She’s never seen anyone in a state like this, and Eight was afraid she might have done more damage than necessary.

Three’s head turned and she mad eye contact with Eight again - but this time, her eyes were fairly normal. They looked pained, as though she was pleading for help. Eight crawled forward towards the wheezing girl, hesitantly reaching her hand out to maybe offer assistance, before the inkling turned her face downwards and began coughing again.

She was hyperventilating at this point, struggling for air, until she made a loud gagging noise - and then began to vomit ink and bile from her mouth and nose. Eight fell backwards, shocked, before crawling towards the other again but keeping a safe distance. She was close enough to just rub the other’s shoulder in an attempt to comfort her.

Three threw up for what felt like 10 long minutes, but it had only been about a minute or so before she finally stopped. She breathed heavily for a moment as Eight gently stroked her side, before letting out a few more weak coughs and completely passing out on her side.

Eight yelped and grabbed Three’s wrist quickly, ignoring the bile that was now coating her claws, and checked the other for a pulse.

She was fine, her pulse was normal, and now her breathing was slow and steady. The ocotling sighed in relief. She then noticed what was on her hand and shook it furiously with disgust, managing to get most of the residue off of it, and scooted backwards a little - moving herself just behind the agent and resting a hand on her shoulder instead.

She did her best to ignore the awful smell. It was nothing but blood, ink, and bile now, a disgusting odor that didn’t smell natural considering the ink was sanitized and had a strange medicinal scent to it. 

“Well uh,” Pearl coughed over the earpiece after a few minutes of silence. “That was fucking disgusting.”

“Pearlie…” Marina scolded.

“What?”

The elevator began to move, and Marina ignored Pearl’s reply. “Anyways… Take a moment to breathe, Agent Eight. It’s almost over.”

Eight sighed, releasing all the tension in her body at once.Her adrenaline finally cooled down, making the pain from the battle seep into her, but she didn’t care at this point. She was alive. She was going to see the surface. It’s almost over.

She breathed in and out and closely leaned over the inkling, as though she was shielding her from danger with her body. She wasn’t sure why she was doing this, really, but she was worried. She was scared. She thought she had killed her. But Agent Three saved her life, and she managed to do the same for her now, so she felt like she needed to protect her. She didn’t care about the stories she heard about the other in the valley, she had never fought her before the eve of arriving at the metro, so she didn’t think she had any reason to feel any ill towards the other.

The elevator began to slow and then came to a stop. Looking up, Eight saw a long ladder and felt herself grin from ear to ear.

It was almost over.

  
  
  



	2. from grueling anxiety.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this took so long guys! Updates might be a little random but I'll try not to keep you all waiting too long ^^"  
> Thank you to Sol, Cynth & Sammy for looking this over and helping with grammar and stuffs <3 it means a lot! I was very tired while writing some of this haha. If you see any more mistakes, feel free to tell me!

For once, everything felt like bliss.

Agent Eight embraced the cool, damp breeze that flew through her tentacles. She breathed, slowly, in and out as she took a moment to settle into reality. The skies were now beginning to clear, letting the warm orange morning light shine through. The whirring of the helicopters, Marina, Pearl, and Cuttlefish’s cheering...It all felt unreal to her.

And she could see the sun. The sunrise was beautiful, and she wanted to step closer and closer to it, enveloped in its warmth. She could stand here for hours, above the ocean, taking it all in.

Until a sudden, overwhelming exhaustion took over her body. Her body began to ache, especially her feet, and she felt as though she could collapse at any second. Her head felt painfully chilly, most likely from her fight with Agent Three some hours ago. It stung as she lifted gentle claws to rub her temples. The sun, which was the most gorgeous thing she thought she had ever seen, was now something of pure evil - the light just made her head hurt more, and she just wanted to rest at this point. Turning her back to the light source, she crouched down and rubbed rough circles on her forehead, attempting to block out all the noise. She could be excited about everything later, but for now, she wanted this headache _gone_.

A slow, careful movement caught her attention after a few moments of trying to ease her pain - which, fortunately, worked well enough for her, as she could at least try and ignore it at this point. Lifting her head to examine the culprit, it was Agent 3, finally waking up from her mini coma after who knows how many hours.

Eight blinked a few times, staring. Three winced and shook her head, gazing around at her surroundings. The octoling couldn’t keep her eyes off the other, because for the first time in months, the inkling looked...peaceful. Harmless, even. Half of her face was covered in bandages, completely covering an ear and an eye, but the aggressive drive in her eyes from before was completely gone. Her eyes were a golden colour, like trophies, and they were only shrouded with confusion at this point. Eight absentmindedly put her chin in the palm of her hand and felt her face heat up, her cheeks burn and a smile grow on her face once again. Three’s undamaged ear wiggled as she listened to the cheers around her - it reminded Eight of the stories of small mammals she read in her studies in the valley, of furry felines who would communicate through subtle body movements -  taking in the setting as she tried to piece everything together, before her eyes met the octoling’s. For a split second they widened, puzzled and full of shock, before they settled - now looking regretful, as the other agent assumed she just remembered the fight from before.

The octoling hastily turned her head away, covering a portion of her face with her hand while her cheeks burned like fire. She didn’t realize how long she was staring for, but it was obviously too long. Her tentacles curled inwards and the pain from her wounds flared the more antsy she got, until she heard Cuttlefish shouting.

“Earth to Agent Eight!” His voice was very cheerful, without a hint of exhaustion. “Can’t have you falling asleep just yet, Marina demands a check up for you ladies.”

Eight stood up, stumbling a bit as she straightened her posture but was able to stand up straight. Cuttlefish held a hand out to Agent 3, helping her up with ease, yet she was quick to get back into her personal bubble when she finally stood up, her ear flattening against her head. Cuttlefish didn’t seem bothered, if anything, he seemed to have expected it, though she did mutter a quiet thanks. Eight took note of this - she clearly didn't like physical contact.

The octoling’s tentacles were tense and didn’t move as much as they normally did, and she found herself shyly looking down as her hand gripped her opposite arm. She vaguely remembered being scolded for major injuries, as trips to the infirmary were costly due to lack of supplies, so she wasn’t used to being treated with care like this. _Everything is different now, though,_ she reminded herself. _Pearl and Marina have shown you nothing but kindness._

She took a deep breath and walked towards the ladder, but stopped in her tracks when she remembered Agent Three’s presence. She found herself holding her breath as she remembered her manners, taking a step back and offering the ladder to Three. These tiny movements made her headache worse, and Three didn’t seem to understand what Eight was doing at all.

“Uh…” The other agent simply stared, and Eight realized just how tired she was at this instant. Normally, she was incredibly patient, but today, she was much too tired for this.

“ _Are you going or…_ ” Three’s voice trailed off. This was the first time Eight had heard Inkling since Three first attacked her before arriving at the metro, but she understood quickly and clearly. Eight held back a frustrated sigh as she grew impatient. But she was still trying to be polite, so she simply motioned the ladder instead — she saw all the puzzles piece together in the others eyes as what the octoling was doing finally clicked in her head.

“ _O-Oh! Oh, jeez, uh. Sorry. Thanks._ ” Three avoided the octoling’s gaze as her face began to heat up with a soft blue colour. She finally made her way up the ladder, albeit a bit slowly and carefully. Eight let her breath go, following after her and nearly collapsing inside the helicopter at Pearl’s feet.

She groaned, loud and clear, and the only response she heard were a few snickers. Something nudged her elbow, and when she looked up, she made eye contact with Pearl, who was crouched above Eight.

“That’s a nasty gash on your back, kiddo.” She commented. Eight suddenly become hyper aware of every wound on her body and the stinging pain it brought her, prompting her to sit up and bite her bottom lip.

She felt something cool touch her back, making her twist around onto her rear and grab whatever touched her — and failing to do so. Marina chuckled, her eyebrows raised and her hand a few inches away, as she was the obvious culprit.

“I was in the military, too.” She said, making Eight feel embarrassed for her skittish behaviour. Marina didn’t seem to mind this, in fact, she seemed rather sympathetic. There was a point in time where she was also new to this world called the surface once, after all.

“Sit here.” Marina motioned a cushioned, box-shaped chair that Three had already settled on. She did as told, taking a seat next to the inkling — who was staring at the ocean, deep in thought — and made sure to keep a comfortable distance.

Marina sat behind her, with Pearl holding a first aid kit open at her side. She held Eight’s sleeveless arm up and began to clean up all the small cuts in it, carefully and gently. It stung, but it was nothing Eight couldn’t handle.

There was a soft hum behind her, and she noticed that Marina had stopped for a few seconds. Eight turned around, expecting her to be done, before Marina lifted her arm again.

“I’m going to need you to stay still, Eight, you have glass in your arm. A lot of it, actually, and there’s probably more in all of those other cuts…” Marina held a pair of tweezers up to one of her cuts.

Eight’s ears flattened when she nodded and she shut her eyes. _This might be a painful process,_ she thought. Her suspicions were confirmed when she felt a searing pain in her arm, followed by blood trickling down and Pearl frantically trying to stop the bleeding as her girlfriend placed the bloodied glass on to a napkin next to her. She inhaled and held back a cry, biting down on her bottom lip again as Marina continued to the next wound.

This process went on for a almost 45 minutes before Marina clicked her tongue and gave Eight a pat on the shoulder. “You should be all good now, Agent Eight. Take care of those wounds and if you find any more glass, let us know.”

She nodded and placed her hands on her lap, staring intently. She was now covered head to toe in bandages and band aids, leaving a lot of stinging and aching, but nothing too bad now. All she would need now is some rest.

Her train of thought was interrupted by something being dropped on her lap with a thump, causing her to let out a yelp that made everyone else on the helicopter jump.

“Woah woah, kid. Didn’t mean to scare ya,” Pearl spoke up with awkward hand motions. “I just wanted to give you your Null Armour. It looks a lot more comfortable and warm than…” She motioned Eight’s outfit. “That.”

Eight fumbled with the fabric of the armour. She only wore it a few times on her tests, but she distinctly remembers deciding that it was far better than the uniform Kamabo had given her when she woke up. The armour was made of thick leather on the outside, but on the inside was a layer of soft, plush fabric that made it not only comfortable but very safe.

“Thank you,” She mumbled, keeping her eyes trained on the armour. One hand reached for her top zipper before pausing. “Should I put it on now?”

Pearl made a grimacing face and she noticed, from the corner of her eye, Three raising a brow at the other inkling. Cuttlefish seemed to not be listening at all, tuning everyone’s voices out with an ipod Eight assumed Pearl gave him.

“I— That won’t be necessary, don’t worry.” Marina assured. “We’ll get you somewhere more private when we get to Inkopolis, and we can get you more clothes later.”

Eight nodded, letting her hand rest. “That’s fine. I can wait.”

Pearl let out a relieved sigh that Eight didn’t exactly understand. She was honestly expecting Marina to say she could, but figured it would be more polite to ask first. She supposed it was a good thing she did, though. Inklings must not be as tight-knit as octolings are, because back in the valley, everyone was close and comfortable enough to at least change their shirts around one another.

Eight shrugged and turned her attention to Three, who Marina was now examining much to the inkling’s annoyance.

“ _I’m fine. Captain already fixed it, I don’t need any more babying._ ” She grumbled, voice quiet and hoarse but still clearly annoyed. Three must not know any Octarian either, Eight mentally noted, as she spoke in only Inkling and Pearl and Marina responded in the same language. Eight was relieved she could understand, even if her knowledge was rather rusty.

“ _Hey hey, we aren’t babying you. You’re being a baby!_ ” Pearl retorted. Three’s ear fell flat, opening her mouth to say something only to close it again.

“ _I just wanted to check if everything was okay._ ” Marina said, letting go of one of Three’s hands that she had been examining. “ _You’re right though, you seem to be fine. But you should keep an eye on all of that. Especially…_ ” Her voice trailed off as she eyed the bandages covering most of Three’s face.

The inkling turned her head away and mumbled a quiet “ _Whatever_ ”, dismissing the conversation as quickly as she could.

Pearl and Marina eyed each other with concern, before shrugging the younger girl off and going back to the front of the helicopter to continue whatever conversations they may have. This left Eight and Three alone for a few moments, back to back, in what felt like static silence.

“Mind if I turn some music on?” Pearl said with a wide grin, catching Eight’s attention. “Marina and I have something we thought you’d like.”

“Oh...I suppose so. You have nice music.” Eight found herself smiling back. She really did enjoy their music, hearing it distantly as she tried to escape and while she was on the NILS statue really made her excited and got her blood pumping. She wouldn’t mind hearing more, even if loud music wouldn’t be best for her head right now. Her curiosity got the best of her.

When Marina turned the song on, however, it wasn’t something she really expected. The song was softer compared to what she heard while escaping, and it was oddly soothing. She found her shoulders relaxing and her ears perking up, trying to pick up all the Inkling lyrics. Eight shut her eyes and simply embraced some of the song.

 

_Take a breath_

_Baby steps_

_There’s no need to rush by._

_Live it all._

_Things will come when you’re ready._

_Don’t you cry_

_Dry your eyes._

_I can promise your future will be bright._

_Look into the light._

 

She felt the weight of Agent Three’s presence lift from the seat, and she opened her eyes to see why. Out of curiosity, she turned her head to see that Three had moved to the opening of the helicopter, sitting with her legs dangling over the edge and staring into the water below them.

 _You should go talk to her,_ Eight thought. She wasn’t exactly sure why she wanted to talk to the other Agent, but something in her gut tugged her forward, shy and hesitantly. Leaving her armour on the chair and being careful not to cause a disturbance, she quietly sat next to the inkling - sitting more than a foot apart so she doesn’t invade her personal bubble or risk bothering her. The inkling didn’t even seem to notice her presence, much to Eight’s relief. Despite the two being on similar playing grounds in terms of strength, the octoling still found half of herself intimidated by the inkling while the other half swelled with curiosity.

Curiosity killed the octopus, she supposed.

She sat there for a moment, trying to focus on the song playing as anxiety coursed through her. She absentmindedly played with one of her tentacles as the other curled itself inwards and outwards, trying to think of something, anything, to say to break the strange silence between the two. When she finally decided to speak, all that really came out was a small coughing noise - which, both fortunately and unfortunately, got the inkling’s attention as she swerved around and made direct eye contact with Eight. Three’s visible ear flattened, but her expression hardly changed - another thing Eight noticed - from her resting bitch face.

Those few seconds where their eyes were locked, gold against a silver blue, felt like far too long - yet Eight found herself unable to turn away. For one, she was just a bit terrified - the Inkling looked angry and bored, clearly annoyed by Eight’s sudden presence. But at the same time, she kind of enjoyed looking at Three when she wasn’t trying to kill her -

“ _Ahem_ ,” Three cleared her throat to get Eight’s attention, successfully doing so. The octoling turned away quickly, her face heating up as she tried to hide behind her own tentacles and think of what to say.

“ _Yes_?” She finally managed to muster in the best inkling she remembered, turning back towards Three but avoiding all eye contact this time.

“ _Do you… need something_?” Three said, unsure of where to take the conversation at all.

Unfortunately, neither did Eight. She found her claws playing with the hem of her gloves, trying to think of a good excuse as to why she decided to sit down and what she should say exactly. Sweat dripped steadily down her forehead as she finally managed to think of what to say, carefully planning out the entire conversation in her head and mentally translating it all into her best inkling.

“ _I, ah, wanted to apologize,_ ” She bagan, looking towards the ocean. “ _For the fight from before. I didn’t mean to hurt you so badly…_ ” Her voice trailed off as she vividly remembered the fight from hours before. While they both had gotten quite roughed up, she still felt awful for making the more experienced agent regurgitate like that - she had never seen anything like it, and it definitely looked painful, especially if she passed out from exhaustion afterwards. She turned to face Three again, but only slightly, just enough to peek through her bangs.

“ _Oh_ ,” Three paused. “ _It’s fine_.”

“ _What?_ ”

“ _It’s fine,_ ” Three repeated, leaned back and scratching the back of her head. “ _I mean...I’m sorry too, I guess. I attacked you first._ ” She shook her head as though it was wet and she was trying to shake off excess ink, her ears wiggling a bit after. “ _Twice._ ”

Eight bit her bottom lip, finally turning her whole head to give Three her full attention. “ _It wasn’t your fault, you weren’t yourself._ ”

“ _It wasn’t yours, either_.”

Another pause. Eight wasn’t expecting this reaction, and she felt the conversation was going by too quickly. She gulped, noticing Three had turned her attention away from her, and tried to make the conversation last a little longer and on a less awkward note.

“ _I’m Agent Eight, by the way._ ” She said in a voice that was almost drowned out by the helicopter’s propellers, the music having ended long ago.

“ _I’ve heard,”_ Three replied flatly. “ _You know who I am already, I guess.”_

Eight was almost taken aback by this reply, not at all expecting to be brushed off so quickly. Her tentacles curled in in slight annoyance - she wasn’t sure why this bugged her, but it did, and decided she wouldn’t stand for it. She just saved the whole world, the very least the inkling could do was show her a bit of respect for this.

“ _Of course I would know who you are_ ,” Eight snapped, eyes narrowed. “ _You killed a good majority of my people._ ”

Three’s ear flattened as her face scrunched up and she sneered at the octoling, but didn’t respond this time. She turned away and leaned forward, a shoulder on her knee and her chin in the palm of her hand.

Eight’s expression softened after she came to realize what she had said. It was rude of her, especially when Three was likely just trying to be a protector. She didn’t know what had gotten into her today - normally, she tried her best to be as polite as she possibly could, but something came over her today that caused her to be a bit more irritable than usual.

“ _I… apologize,_ ” Eight sighed. Three eyed the octoling, but didn’t move. “ _That was rude of me, I’m not sure what came upon me I…_ ” Her voice trailed off, turning into an almost-whisper. “ _I’m very tired._ ”

Three exhaled loudly, making Eight nervous - had she made the inkling angry? - before leaning back with a grunt, her palms hoisting her up as she tilted her body backwards and stretched her neck and back. Eight was unsure what the other was doing exactly, but she found herself watching intently, tilting her head to the side a bit with some curiosity as she caught herself eyeing Three’s stomach when the other’s shirt lifted slightly.

“ _It’s fine, I guess. You’re not wrong,_ ” She mumbled, leaning forward again and cracking her knuckles. “ _You did a lot of shit today. I’d be kinda grumpy, too._ ”

Eight rubbed her arm, unsure once again. She idly poked at one of her bandages. “ _Can we…_ ” There goes her tentacles again. “ _Can we be friends?_ ”

“ _Friends?_ ” Three echoed back, confusion filling her voice.

“ _Well… I know our past is conflicting, but, I wouldn’t mind getting to know you better…_ ” That was the best explanation Eight could come up with, as not even she could grasp a solid reason as to why she wanted to befriend this inkling in particular. Something just drew her towards her.

Three went silent, lips pursed and unmoving. Eight felt her heart begin to race as she waited for a reply, her hands shaking and her throat going dry. What if she said no? Would she never talk to Three again?

“ _I… I guess so. Sure._ ” Three finally answered. Eight felt thousands of weights being lifted off her shoulders, as if someone had been weighing her down themselves and finally released her from their deadly grasp.

Eight squealed and leaned forward excitedly, taking the inkling’s hands in her own and disregarding Three’s personal bubble completely now. “ _You mean it? You really mean it?_ ”

Three scooted backwards, face flushed and sweaty now. Eight noticed and immediately let go, backing away to give the girl her space.

“ _Yeah, yeah. It’s no big deal._ ” She said nonchalantly.

“ _I just, well, never made friends with an inkling before—_ ”

Eight’s voice was cut off by two shouts, coming from both Cuttlefish and Pearl.

“You seemed to be forgettin’ some squids, Eight.” Pearl strutted over, crouching down to the two younger cephalopod’s levels. She spoke to Eight in Octarian despite the earlier conversation, with the intent to tease Agent Three just a little bit.

Three’s ear flattened again as soon as she realized she was being singled out, and Eight didn’t even notice.

“I’m sorry, Pearl,” The Octoling stuttered. “That’s not what I meant, I mean, I kind of always saw you as a parental figure and—”

Pearl patted her back, chuckling. “I was just teasing, kid, no worries.”

“Oh,” Eight realized, bringing a hand to her chin and giggling to herself. “I see.”

“Anyways, I wanted to let ya know we’ll be landing soon. You two should get ready,” She stood back up and patted Eight’s head. “We don’t know where we’ll be landin’ yet.”

Eight nodded, standing up herself. Three simply looked between Eight and Pearl, completely lost as to what they had been sayin.

Eight found Three’s face priceless, and contemplated not telling her just to get a few laughs, but decided against it.

“She said we’ll be landing soon and to get ready, nothing too important.” Eight translated to the inkling, offering a clawed hand to the her.

“Oh.” Three took her hand and hoisted herself up, then quickly retracted it back into her jacket’s pockets. “Thanks.”

 

* * *

 

“Hay Mar,” Pearl mumbled, leaning on Marina’s shoulder. Marina responded by wrapping her arm around the small inkling’s torso. Pearl yawned, nuzzling her face into the octoling’s side, leaning all her weight into the other. “You think they’ll get along?”

Marina leeredd intently at the inkling and octoling duo that sat at the helicopter’s edge, brows furrowed and deep in thought. She eyed Pearl when she spoke - an acknowledgement that she heard - only to put her focus back on the agents and stay quiet.

Pearl knew Marina well enough not to prod her for an answer. She would get one eventually, but it was clear that not even Marina knew. She could feel Marina’s nervousness radiate off of her, even if the physical aspects were obvious - her tentacles swayed, her palms were sweaty, and she was spacing out. Pearl couldn’t blame her. They both had gotten attached to Agent Eight over the past three months, and Eight was practically family to them. And Agent Three? Putting the pieces together from what Cuttlefish told her, and after learning that Marina is an octoling, Pearl couldn’t exactly blame her girlfriend for being cautious.

“I don’t know,” Marina finally responded in a whisper. That was good enough for Pearl, at least. She wouldn’t push her for anything more than that.

“Yeah,” Pearl wrapped her arms around Marina and nuzzled her more, catching the octoling’s attention. “Me too.”

Marina lay her head on Pearl’s, the two leaning into each other, entangled in a half-embrace. Her tentacles now coiled around Pearl, almost completely engulfing her in her body - something that Pearl was used to, as she was basically Marina’s teddy bear for whenever she was stressed at this point. The octoling finally pulled her gaze away from the agents and shut her eyes, leaning her head on the inkling’s now and focusing on her breathing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For anyone curious, I got the lyrics from here! : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwJ0MEbZ2xM  
> It's a lovely interpretation of Into the Light ♥  
> If you can't tell, I'm playing with language barriers just a bit. I hope it's not too confusing? Eight speaks quite a few languages and I wanted to convey that. I also like to imagine that everyone in the octo expansion except for 3 talked to her in octarian, since there's so many octos in the metro, cuttlefish is a war vet, and its marina's native tongue - I also imagine Pearl learned octarian from marina since marina learned inkling from pearl!  
> I hope yall enjoyed ♥


	3. and her light.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IM SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG!! honestly I've been having such a hard time with motivation.... this chapter is kinda filler-y but I feel it had to happen so i apologize if its not as good as other chapters, but !! theres pearlina i hope you like that i havent written pearlina in so long  
> anyways i hope you enjoy! ill try to get the next chapters out soon, but they make take a while as ive got a lot of other responsibilities + a new project going on so ... ! but i will do my best bc ilu guys!!

A warm hue cast itself over Inkopolis, making the city glow in a way that was gentle and welcoming, as the group of helicopters slowly made its descent towards an empty parking lot in a seemingly abandoned store. The city was still asleep during these hours - and it would stay asleep for a few more - as the inklings made up most of the population, and the city has since accommodated for their tendency to sleep in until almost noon. Pearl roused from her temporary slumber as the helicopter rattled against the stone ground while the loud whir of the blades slowing to a stop. She felt Marina’s tentacles tighten against her arm, but her girlfriend didn’t move. She wasn’t asleep - she could tell by her girlfriend’s breathing - but was still too tired to move much. Pearl didn’t blame her.

She nudged Marina with her elbow, gently, and mumbled something to her about their arrival. The octoling grunted and sat up straight, her tentacles still clinging to the small girl’s arms. She stood up straight and yawned as her way of saying that she was ready to go in a language only the couple could speak.

In front of them, Agent Three hopped down from the helicopter with Captain Cuttlefish following close behind, talking to her about what Pearl guessed was important agent business.

Eight didn’t follow but she stood at the helicopter’s door with a puzzled expression, unsure whether she should follow or stay where she was. Pearl felt Marina’s tentacles tighten around her arm as the octoling’s gaze locked on Agent Three. She and Cuttlefish now stood in the middle of the lot together, with the old man rambling on about who knows what and the young inkling half-listening.

Off the Hook had only known Agent Three for a few hours now, and while Pearl had to admit she thought Three was pretty badass, it was clear to her that her girlfriend felt the opposite. Marina didn’t trust Agent Three, and cod, was she struggling to hide it. She had been staring at the inkling for hours, as if waiting for her to do something rash and give Marina an excuse to be upset. Pearl didn’t exactly understand why her girlfriend didn’t like the agent, but she ultimately decided it didn’t matter. Marina is a smart girl, so whatever her reasoning is, Pearl knew that she would have the right to feel that way. She would have to wait to find out, however, as she didn’t want to push the octoling out of her comfort zone — especially with all the new information she found out about her partner.

Pearl made her way towards the younger octoling, with her groggy girlfriend practically clinging to her and tapped her shoulder, making the agent yelp and nearly fall out of the helicopter before Marina’s quick reflexes kicked in and grabbed her in one swoop, pulling her upright. In the distance, Three had turned her head to examine the noise and stared for half a minute, before shrugging and resumed listening to Cuttlefish’s rambles. Pearl watched as Eight’s ankles wobbled once she set her feet on the ground. _We need to get her out of those heels,_ Pearl concluded.

“Woah there, kid. You almost hurt yourself,” Pearl chuckled, patting Eight’s back.

Marina fixed Eight’s tentacles and patted her head like a worried mother, and the other octoling simply accepted these actions. Pearl giggled.

“Why are you laughing?” Eight asked in inkling as she took careful steps off the helicopter. Pearl assumed Eight forgot to switch back to Octarian after talking to Three, but that made things easier for her.

“Marmar looks like a mom, coddling you like that,” The tiny rapper snorted when Marina shot her a disappointed yet teasing look. “It’s not a bad thing, I just think it’s cute.”

“Well, I… Octarians are very tight-knit, that’s all,” Marina remarked. “We can be very affectionate when we care about others.”

“Oh, I know,” Pearl smirked. Marina stifled a giggle at this response, a hand touching her own cheek as though she was checking if she was blushing (it was no surprise that she was). The remark seemed to fly over Eight’s head.

Instead, Eight’s expression softened with a smile, and Pearl found herself gently returning it. She had to admit, she liked Eight, and would consider her family at any given chance. It’s been a while since she had cared for someone in such a non-romantic way.

The three of them walked forward, stopping just a few feet away from Agent Three and Captain Cuttlefish in order to give them some privacy.

Pearl noticed that Eight almost towered over Marina, before her eyes trained down towards her shoes, reminding the inkling that she was wearing heels. Pearl came to the conclusion that Eight was probably about the same height as Marina — and possibly the same age — but she wouldn’t really know if the latter was true unless she asked.

“Say, Eight?” The octoling agent turned her head. “How old are ya? Do you remember?”

“My age? Oh, well...” Eight put a claw to her chin and thought for a moment. “I do not remember exactly when I was born, but I believe I’m around...Twenty? If I’m correct?”

Pearl’s jaw dropped in shock, followed by Marina’s face heating up with embarrassment from her earlier actions. The octoling was only a year younger than her, and here she was, thinking she was at least 17; old enough to be independent in Inkopolis, but still a kid.

The rapper cleared her throat. “I getcha. I guess lookin’ young for your age runs in this family,” She lightly punched Eight’s shoulder, though that only resulted in confusing her. “Here I was thinking you were like, Mar’s age.”

Eight laughed, gentle and quiet. “I suppose.”

“We should probably head off now, Agent Eight. The square is close and it should be mostly empty right now for a few more hours,” Marina said, rubbing her tired eyes.

“Oh, yeah. And we can take you to Marina’s old apartment!”

“My old apartment?”

“It’d be better than going aaaall the way back to the mansion,” Pearl let out an exage yawn. “Besides, I’m too tired to go all the way back to Nantai. It’d be easier to take the train there and go home later.”

“I guess so. It’s nothing fancy, though. Are you okay with that, Eight? We can go through the square a little on our way…”

Eight’s ears perked up, curious and excited. “I would love that.”

“Then it’s settled! Let’s get g-“

Pearl’s word’s were interrupted by a loud blasting sound, a surprising gasp from Eight, and cold droplets of washed out teal ink hitting her cheeks.

Agent Three had got up and left, superjumping off to who-knows-where without a single “goodbye” or a “nice meeting you.”

She noticed the two octoling girls in front of her had very different reactions - Marina was of annoyance she tried desperately to hide behind a poor poker face, and Eight’s seemed… hurt, strangely enough. Pearl was unsure how to feel herself, because while she normally wouldn’t give ‘two shits and a seahorse tail’ in her own words, she didn’t appreciate it when someone took time out of their day to upset her loved ones, intentionally or not.

“Yo, Craig,” Pearl called to Cuttlefish - who seemed unfazed by Three’s rude exit and was now humming a song to himself. “Where’d she run off to in such a hurry?”

Cuttlefish’s expression faltered. “Oh, she’s just off to do her own thing. I wouldn’t worry too much.”

Cuttlefish noticed the pain on Eight’s face quickly, however, and added onto his words. “She’s always like that, a lone squid. Doesn’t know how to make friends too well. She means no harm, lass.” He gave the girl’s shoulder a tap with his cane. “You’ll run into her again.”

Pearl watched as Eight put on a faint smile and nodded. She considered reassuring the octoling that she’ll see her again, but even she wasn’t really sure of such a thing.

“I ought to be off now, ladies,” Cuttlefish said, giving them all a peace sign which made Marina giggle. “It’s been months since I’ve seen my grand daughters, they probably miss their coolest gramps by now.”

Pearl stretched, yawning. “We should head off too… It won’t be long before the whole city wakes up, and I wanna get some damn shut eye already.”

“Language, missy,” He scolded.

Marina stretched a hand out to shake his. “It was a pleasure to meet you, Captain.”

“Hoho, and you too, Miss Ida! You’re a radical young lady, even if you are part of the species of my ex arch enemies.”

Marina only rolled her eyes at the latter comment, taking his frail hands and shaking them gently. Pearl held back a snarl, defensive instincts kicking in without thinking. “You’re… Pretty rad yourself, Captain.”

“And you, Miss Houzuki,” He chuckled. “We need to get together and bust some sick rhymes sometime!”

Pearl roared with laughter, warm and exciting laughs that gave her a burst of energy as her arms wrapped around her torso. “You fucking bet, old man! I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

“And Eight,” Cuttlefish’s voice became more serious, completely changing the mood of the conversation. Pearl’s arms didn’t move, but her mouth formed a straight line. Marina crossed her arms, shuffling uncomfortably.

“You’ve been through so much, young lady. You’ve not only achieved your goal and escaped to the surface, but you’ve also taught me not to see the world in all black and white.” The captain placed a gentle hand on Eight’s shoulder as she began to tremble. “I’m beyond proud of you, little miss.”

Eight was quiet for only a few seconds, before surges of emotions soared through her body and like a flip of a switch, she was reduced to nothing but tears. As she hiccuped, she grabbed the smaller old inkling and pulled him into a crushing hug. Which, although shocking, he gladly returned with the same passion as the octoling girl wailed into his shoulder.

Before Pearl realized, she found herself tearing up as well. She sniffed and rubbed her eyes, trying to keep any tears from falling, but when she turned her head and saw Marina crying too, her heart practically burst. Warm tears flowed down her face despite her efforts to tame them, but she eventually smiled and let them go.

Pearl’s thoughts were cut short when she felt a warm hand grasp her wrist and tug her forward as Marina pulled both her and Pearl towards the two hugging cephalopods.

“Group hug time!” Marina laughed through her own tears, and Pearl accepted it, wrapping her arms around the old inkling and Agent Eight.

After a few minutes of happy, loving tears, Eight was the first to break the hug when she finally managed to calm herself down and reduce herself to nothing but a few smiles and sniffs. “Thank you,” Was all she managed to mumble, the words tumbling out yet getting caught on her tongue on the way out for a few seconds. “You’ve all been so kind to me.”

“Of course, Agent Eight,” Marina pulled back, rubbing tears out her own eyes. “You’re family.”

Eight almost burst into another fit of emotional bawling before a loud, blaring sound alerted from Pearl’s backside. Eight’s first reaction was to stumble back and cover her ears - understandable, considering her circumstances - before Cuttlefish actually managed to catch her and steady her footing. Pearl chuckled sheepishly when Marina raised a brow at her as she fumbled around her pants back pockets, an act proving itself to be difficult considering how large her hoodie was.

When she finally managed to shut the thing off, she groaned, long, dramatic and loud.

“What is it, Pearlie?” Marina inquired, patting Eight’s shoulder while the fellow octoling came back to earth.

“Our manager wants to have a meeting with us this evening.”

“He… knows we’re on vacation though, right?”

“He fuckin’ better. Don’t worry,” Pearl clapped her hand against Marina’s back playfully. “My phone’s off, and I didn’t bother replying after I read it. He can bother us after vaycay.”

Marina chuckled. “Yeah, he can leave it.”

Pearl caught Eight twirling her tentacles with a single finger from the corner of her eye. “Yo, we should get goin’. Kid’s tired.”

Eight mumbled words Pearl couldn’t really comprehend, turning her head to the shorter squid. “May I … Ask what I should do now?”

Marina chuckled. “You can come with us for now, you need sleep. Our weekend home is a few blocks from Inkopolis Plaza, if you can make the walk.”

“Yeah that… sounds fine,” Eight nodded, her voice soft and laced with oncoming slumber that she was clearly doing her best to fight back.

Pearl clapped the octoling’s shoulder, fortunately not hitting a wound but waking the girl up a bit. “It won’t be long, don’t worry.”

Eight simply muttered in Octarian as the three finally made their walk towards the nearest train station. Despite Pearl’s reassurance, she knew it would still be a fair 45 minute walk before they finally got to the weekend home from where they were now, but it was far better than having to trek all the way to the duo’s mansion on Mount Nantai, and there was no way they would be able to get a taxi at this hour.

Pearl leaned closer to her girlfriend as they walked, taking in the scenery in attempt to not fall asleep on her toes (ultimately making her more drowsy). She stealthily tried to take Marina’s hand in her own, before being swatted away.

“Hey!” Pearl whispered, offended. Thank goodness Eight was far too fixated on staring at all the advertisements. “What was that for, ‘Rina?”

“No third wheeling, Pearl,” Marina giggled.

Pearl groaned, remembering their unspoken rule of hanging out with others — if they didn’t bring a friend, don’t make them feel left out. Marina always felt terrible when she noticed people being pushed out of the group, and a kind soul like her was always determined to keep them feeling included. Pearl thought it was silly at the moment, because the agent was completely preoccupied with studying her surroundings, but she knew it meant a lot to Marina and listened.

The younger octoling patted her head. “We’ll be alone soon, I promise, Pearlie.”

“Mmkay,” Was all Pearl could muster in her tired state.

They finally arrived at the station, just in the nick of time for the train’s next stop - though they’d likely have to wait at least 10 minutes until it arrived, and another until it left, it gave the three time to get a few tickets beforehand. Or, rather, time for Pearl and Marina to buy themselves tickets and an extra one for Eight.

Eight froze when her brain registered where they were, and Pearl and Mrina were quick to notice. Marina lay a gentle hand on the other octoling’s shoulder, guiding her to a seat as her breathing quickened and she broke into a sweat.

“Maybe uh… Maybe the train is a bad idea for today,” Pearl coughed.

Marina was gently stroking the agent’s shakey hand, knowing exactly what it was like to panic in a situation like this. Pearl couldn’t really relate, she’s always had a rather lovely life, but she’s also woken up to Marina’s screams from nightmares or her accidentally dropping a glass cup at four in the morning. It hurt her to see her lover in pain like that, especially because she didn’t understand why, but after learning a little more about Marina’s past in the recent months she began to comprehend it better. It only made sense for Eight to have these reactions, too, after all she’s gone through.

Were all octolings horrendously traumatized?

The duo sat at either side of her now, reassuring her that things were alright, they can probably find some other way to the home, she’s safe now, no worries. About fifteen minutes in, Pearl got an idea and scrambled to turn her phone on. Once on, she opened her browser and hastily searched for the cutest animal videos she could find. A trick that often worked when she didn’t know how to help Marina a year ago, but always managed to work and still does now on calmer days. It didn’t take long for Eight’s eyes to become entranced on the images of soft baby seals playing together, little plush sea slugs kissing, or compilations of Lil Judd playing with his favourite fishing rod toy. Pearl half expected Eight to become more curious and perhaps ask questions, but the octoling was surprisingly quiet. However, to be fair, any time either Pearl or Marina tried to get a response out of her, she could only muster up a rough squeaking noise. The two wordlessly agreed not to push her.

After 30 minutes of scrolling through videos and images of small fuzzy friends, the agent had finally calmed her nerves. Pearl gently rubbed her back as she continued to hold the phone in front of the octoling with her free hand, which was becoming awfully stiff. She kept the videos going just in case, so she could catch her breath again, and when Pearl finally concluded that the octoling was calm enough to put her phone away she felt a heavy weight on her shoulder.

Agent Eight had completely passed out.

“Er, Mar…” Pearl whispered, attempting to catch Marina’s attention. “Mar, hey.”

Marina turned her head from her own phone, ears perked.

Pearl motioned towards the sleeping girl desperately, unsure what to do. Eight’s tentacles had ceased their movement and now only moved slightly with her breathing. It looked unnatural, really, as this made her tentacles look more stiff like an inklings’ instead of flowy like an octoling’s. Pearl’s girlfriend stifled a giggle and nudged the agent, making her stir. She did not open her eyes, but did mumble something intangible in Octarian.

“Eight,” Marina said in Octarian, her voice gentle and soft - she didn’t want to scare the other into another potential panic attack, after all. “Eight, can you switch to an octopus, please?”

Pearl’s lips formed a pouty frown. She knew where this was going, and she knew she would have no say in it.

Eight drowsily obliged, her octopus form taking up a good portion of the bench now. Her tentacles draped over both the idol’s laps, one even moving to cling to Pearl’s ankle. She narrowed her eyes and scooted to the side.

“Let me guess,” Pearl crossed her arms. She was careful not to raise her voice much. “You want me to carry her home, right?”

Marina put on the most innocent, pleading face she could, placing her hands gently on her lap and batting her eyes sweetly at Pearl. Oh, she was weak, and she knew she couldn't say no to that face. She looked away. Don't fall for it, don’t fall for it, don’t —

“Oh, could you, my dear Pearlie? Please?” Her other half cooed, her voice smooth as butter. Pearl felt herself shatter like glass and her face burn up. She looked farther away.

“Mar, I know I carry you all the time, but—“

“But Pearlie, sweetie pie, pumpkin, baby g—“

Pearl gave in.

“F-fine, just ‘cause… yer cute..” She grunted, standing up and scooping the sleeping octopus in her arms.

This was nothing new to Pearl, to be fair. Marina had convinced her to carry her in octopus form on multiple occasions, and Pearl has even let Marina do the same once in a blue moon — but only when they were at home and she felt particularly lazy. Pearl didn't _mind_ , technically, but that was Marina. This is agent Eight, a girl a year younger than her that the two of them have basically adopted by now. Not Marina. But in the end, she knew Eight probably wouldn't even remember this, and they needed to get her home somehow, so…

Fortunately for Pearl, the octopus wasn't too heavy for her - she weighed about the same as herself, and was lighter than Marina’s octopus form. Pearl did actually have some muscle to her despite her size as well, so it didn't really bug her - it helped that Eight involuntarily wrapped each of her limbs all over the small inkling’s body as well, supporting herself in her sleep.

It didn’t bug her much, true, but she didn’t want Marina to feel like she won the cuteness game. So she put on a show to pretend she was struggling, adding a few grunts here and there, acting like Eight was possibly the heaviest octopus in the world.

Marina didn't fall for it, instead opting to get up and kiss her girlfriend’s cute, exposed forehead. “Let’s go home, sweetie.”

Pearl gave up. It was worth it if it made Marina smile.

* * *

“Go home, lass. There’s no need to patrol for a long time. You need the rest,” Cuttlefish said, voice laced with concern. It felt more like pity.

Agent Three built up enormous pressure in her squid form and blasted herself into the air at top speed, landing on top of a building a mile away from the helicopter’s landing space. She stumbled, but maintained her footing. Wheezing, she wiped the thick layer of sweat forming off her forehead. That wasn’t there before she jumped…

Three took a deep breath and repeated the process, not jumping too high or too fast to make sure she didn’t get caught. Superjumping at great lengths across the city wasn’t exactly legal due to risk of injury, after all.

With each jump, she struggled more and more to keep her composure, but she pressed on. Eventually, she managed to make it to the centre of Inkopolis Plaza without falling down - completely ignoring the captain’s earlier request. It was deserted - which was nothing new since the Square was built -  but much more so than usual, given the time of day. No one was awake yet, and the sun was only just peeking over the horizon.

She was wheezing now, her ears ringing like alarms and her head burning like dry ice, all telling her to lie down and rest. She ignored the internal warnings and pressed on. She walked towards the sewer hole leading to Octo Valley and crawled inside.

Normally it would have taken her a few seconds to warp to the valley, but with her weakened state, it took almost a full minute. When she arrived, she finally collapsed on her side.

She lay there, coughing and wheezing, trying to catch her own breath. Her face and head stung and she felt like she would lose consciousness any time soon, but struggled to stay awake. She held her bandaged face.

This felt eerily familiar and she wasn’t sure why.

After almost five minutes of laying on the dirt ground, trying to breath, Agent Three came to the conclusion that she was going to pass out soon. So, she could at the very least, try to get somewhere comfortable.

Three pushed herself upwards to get up, but ended up collapsing back as soon as she put weight on her feet. Hissing, she settled with crawling towards the cabin a few feet away from her. Over time, Cuttlefish had built upon it (much to Three’s pleasure), giving the inkling a decent place to rest if missions got especially tough without any chance of getting home. Three eventually ended up abusing it, and it became her own cabin more often than not.

The inside was only big enough to fit a bed and a desk, which was fine by Three. Once she managed to get inside, she didn’t bother closing the door and weakly crawled into the creaking bed.

She could change later. Agent Three just wanted some damn sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if you ever want to see behind the scenes stuff about my agents or ocs in general, my twitter is nastymajesty and my tumblr is herobrush-replica!


	4. I used to weave crowns

“Earth to Three? Hellloo? Wake up, doofus.”

Agent Three felt something poke her face with unnecessary force. She recognized the voice and once her brain registered who it belonged to, she decided to keep pretending to be asleep, opting to shut them harder and roll over onto her side with a dramatic groan.

“You can’t pretend to be asleep forever,” Giggled a new, but still familiar voice. “You’ll eventually get hungry or have to go to the bathroom!”

Three rolled onto her back. “The second example wasn’t necessary, Callie,” replied the first voice.

Three took a deep breath and opened her uncovered eye, keeping her sight focused on the rotting ceiling above her. _The cabin needs some repairs sometime,_ she thought. _But that’s not my problem today._

“Threeeeeeeeeee…..” Callie drew out her name like a ghost, very slowly moving her head into the agent’s vision. The other person in the room did the same, the two practically touching foreheads, revealing herself as Marie. That came as no surprise.

“Yep. That’s my name,” she sighed, finally giving in and attempted to sit up. The idols moved back to give the inkling some space. As soon as she was sitting up, Callie’s arms were wrapped firmly around her in a strong bear hug. Three winced, her head pounding and aching more than the rest of her body like her head was being wedged between two walls.

“Three, we missed you so much!” Callie began rambling, her words jumping out of her mouth faster than Three could process. “You and Gramps were gone for so long and we were worried, so many things happened while you were gone, and and —“ She was cut off by her own gasps when tears began to form at the corner of her eyes. She gently let go of Three, wiping her tears so she didn’t make a fuss.

“Callie thought you died,” Marie added bluntly, moving across the room to Callie’s side, which was a little cramped. “But to be fair, I did too. We found you passed out next to the bed with a fever. Could you have at least made it to the bed?” Three didn’t notice her dip a small hand towel into a bucket of water and place it on her head. She didn’t have the energy to really look around at what was in the cabin right now or take in what’s changed, since it hurt to even keep her eye open. She shut her eye again, nodding to indicate that she was still trying to listen.

“Gramps told us you would try going back to agent work right away, even though he told you not to, so we came here.” Callie placed  a gentle hand on Three’s. “We’re glad we found you… We heard what happened, every last bit.”

Three groaned. _Great, someone else knows about my super awesome brainwashing. Next thing I know the whole city will know._

“It’s not something I’m fond of. It’s something I’d like to completely forget, actually,” she said,  her speech feeling heavy and tired.

“Shit hits the fan when you’re in the SBS. Callie got herself into quite the conundrum herself, actually.”

Callie laughed sheepishly. “Yeah, and now you’re not the only agent with a badass tattoo, Three!”

Three opened her eye and snapped her head around just enough to look at Callie, perplexed and worried. Callie lifted her shirt up to reveal her stomach, now bearing a large tattoo of an octopus taking up a quarter of her hip. Something about it made Three guess she didn’t plan that.

“Whoah,” Three raised her left hand and rested it on her right arm, where her tattoo of the Great Zapfish lay. She anxiously rubbed her own shoulder, eyeing the idol with concern. “What happened, Callie?”

“Oohh, you knooww… Just uh, got kidnapped a little while after you and Gramps went on your trip and Marie had to hire a new agent to come and rescue me from DJ Octavio?”

The sea-green inkling’s mouth hung open while her brain processed what she just heard. “What?”

“Well,” Marie began, “Callie got kidnapped by Octavio and since you were gone I had to—“

“I get that, I heard,” Three leaned forward, completely disregarding the wet rag on her head and letting it fall on her head with a wet plop. “First of all, how the hell did you get kidnapped, and second of all, you hired another agent?” She let jealousy drench those last two words, feeling an irrational amount of anger knowing that there was another agent and she missed out on so much ass kicking. And _how dare_ Octavio kidnap her coworker and friend like that? _How dare he_?

“Oh Three, don’t be upset! You’ll love Agent Four!” Callie pushed Three back into a resting position.

“Actually, knowing Three, she’ll probably despise her for no real reason,” Marie whispered. Callie ignored her.

“I can tell you everything later, but you reaaally should sleep now…” The black-tentacled inkling placed the rag back on Three’s forehead, gently pushing the other onto her back again. Three only pouted.

“I want to know every detail.” Three mumbled.

“You’ll get it all later, especially if it means keeping you in here so you don’t go off on patrol injured.” The green idol replied.

“Mmhm. We know you’re too stubborn to not do agent duties, so we’re staying here until you’re all better!”

 

* * *

 

“I feel like I got hit with a tranquilizer,” Eight rubbed her head, groaning. “I didn’t sleep for very long, did I?”

The trio had arrived at a park area, the sun now at the perfect spot in the sky that made the city bright and welcoming. The weather was cool and humid, much to most inkling’s displeasure. After getting off the train they decided to sit down and see if the agent would rise from her slumber, since it was becoming a bit of a hassle carrying the octopus around the city.

“You didn’t, don’t worry.” Marina reassured. “We figured we’d stop here to see if you’d wake up.”

“That makes sense…” Eight leaned back on the park bench, taking in the whole park. It was large and lush, bustling with peaceful life. There were birds bathing in a fountain just a few feet away, and an elderly inkling walking one of their pets. “It’s not as quiet as before.”

“Nope, all the octolings and non-inklings are gettin’ up now. Some squishy kids, too, but they’re in the school area.” Pearl shrugged. She was angled forward, elbows on her knees, watching the birds. Two of them were now cuddling together at the edge of the fountain instead of bathing in it like the others.

Eight’s eyes shot open at ‘octolings’. She sat up, quickly shifting her sight around the park in a desperate search for another cephalopod like her and Marina.

“There are… Other octolings? Here? On the surface?”

Marina giggled. “There have been for a few months now. After I left to the surface, I think a lot followed.”

Eight thought back to a few years prior. She only has a few memories of the rumours about Marina’s disappearance from when she was still in training - everyone presumed she was dead for months. Eight was one of the few who believed otherwise, and it was proven true when she learned about the younger octoling’s identity in the metro.

“You gave everyone the courage they needed.” She whispered, watching a much younger octoling wearing all black and sunglasses leave her home in stride.

“You have no idea how happy that makes me feel,” Marina lay a hand on Eight’s shoulder. “And I’m equally as happy to have been able to help you and reassure you that you’re not alone.”

“Do the inklings —“ Eight stuttered, now turning to Pearl, “Do they not care? There was so much.. Propaganda, about them. We were raised on stories about how vile they supposedly are.”

“Naaah,” Pearl waved. “No one even knows octolings exist, actually. All thought octopuses went extinct with Humans.”

Eight’s mouth fell agape.

How are inklings so… so… _ignorant_?

“They - They don’t think we’re _real_?” She stuttered. “What about the great turf war? That was only a hundred years ago! That’s impossible! You can’t tell me they don’t know.”

“Sorry, Eight.” Pearl stretched back, chuckling. “But the average inkling is as dumb as custard on the sidewalk. Most kids skip their educations, and even if they went to school like they were supposed to they don’t teach much history outside of sports.”

Eight was stunned. Flabbergasted. Stupefied. Completely and utterly confounded.

Marina patted her back. “There, there. I had the same reaction.”

“The smarter inklings usually don’t live in Inkopolis or none of the younger folk bother listening to them. In the end, we just don’t really care. The jellyfish take care of most things in the city.” Pearl added.

“They’re smart in...their own way. They’ll do amazing things if it means being more ‘efficient’.” Marina’s last word dripped with sarcasm, and Eight instantly knew she meant that they were just plain lazy.

“Or if it has to do with fighting. Ink battles are pretty important, you know. Do you know how many buildings in the city can actually function as turf arenas? It’s serious business.”

Eight thought back to what she learned about inklings back in the Valley. _Violent and bloodthirsty,_ she recalled an unfamiliar voice tell her past self. _An inkling will stop at nothing if it means they can cause destruction. They only care about the adrenaline that comes with their carnage._ Her gut wrenched.

She felt Marina’s hand lift off her shoulder and the familiar weight leave the bench. “We should get going. Soon enough the whole city will be awake, and I’d rather be home on my break than risk paparazzi.”

Pearl’s weight followed, and Eight did the same. She noticed Marina shiver when a cool breeze blew in their direction, and Eight was thankful to be wearing the extra layering for now.

“We have three places we can head to but we can only go to one today,” Pearl started. Eight knew they were rich, but three homes? She didn’t even have one… “There’s my apartment in the city, my mansion, and a cottage we have on Mount Nantai.”

_Ah, that’s where they must have gone when they found out about me._

“We still have a few more weeks of vacation, so we can go to the others anytime later if you want to, Eight.” Marina finished. Eight remembered how often the duo would have to leave her alone on her missions for their work, but periodically checking on her via text on her CQ_80. It wasn’t until her last week in the facility they were there everyday, claiming that they had convinced their boss to give them time off so they could help her.

“Uh,” Eight mumbled. “Do you want me to choose?” She wasn’t sure where she wanted to go now, since everything was so unfamiliar to her on the surface. She was still adapting to the culture shock of it all as well.

“I just want to go the hell to sleep at this point.” Pearl complained. “Let’s just go back to my mansion, it’s most comfortable there anyways.”

Marina nodded, clearly too tired to argue even if she wanted to. Eight felt the same. Pearl promptly stood up and stretched her arms over her head with a yawn, “We oughta get going then. I don’t wanna be here during the battle rush.”

Eight guessed that that’s when most of the inklings in Inkopolis rush to go play turf war or other battles. Marina pulled out her cell phone and made a phone call, and just a few minutes later someone had driven up to the street closest to them to pick them up. Eight had been in cars before - they weren’t uncommon underground, actually, - but never in one so...long. She made a mental note to ask about it later, because the idea of having a very, very long vehicle for only a few people seemed utterly useless.

 

 

 

The drive home was quiet, and Eight had found herself staring out the window the entire time. She took in the view of the city as they made their way to the Houzuki mansion, every building and light source scattered around. They were all different shapes and sizes, but still somehow completely uniform and organized. It was so different compared to the cities underground, where most of the taller buildings had been abandoned for safety reasons in favour of the smaller ones built into the ground.

In the distance, circling what Eight assumed was the tallest tower in Inkopolis, was a large zapfish; the Great Zapfish, the major source of the city’s power. Something inside her felt a twinge of repentance, settling deep into her stomach.

Although she couldn’t remember the details, Eight remembered the day the Valley Octarians captured the Great Zapfish. Their power was slowly dying away, and their King had promised that taking the Zapfish would save everyone. News spread to the Canyon, and while they didn’t need the power as much as those in the Valley did, they were excited to see a potential change in their way of life. Octavio was confident that the Inklings - the ones that weren’t Agents 1 and 2, at least, but they had not seen signs of them for months at the time - were all too lazy to try and take it back.

When Agent 3 came about, Octavio didn’t back down. He wanted to face her himself, and invited both the Valley dwellers and Canyon dwellers to his concert, where he said he’d beat her to a pulp. His confidence inspired hope for everyone.

Of course, that’s not how it went at all. It turned out that Agent 3 was a new exception to the “all inklings are totally lazy and just want to party and beat each other up all day” rule. Eight might not remember much, but she remembers the rumours of 3 taking down hundreds of octarians at a time faster than both Agents 1 and 2 ever could combine. She remembers seeing the Inkling fight their king, almost with a kind of grace. She remembers the song from that night, the Squid Sisters who turned out to be the first two agents, and everything coming together. Everything Octavio had said, everything their military had told them their whole lives, was all propaganda.

The Zapfish left her line of sight as they drove off the highway and in the opposite direction. Eight wondered if it knew the octolings were once it’s enemy.

Before she could let her mind anymore, the car had stopped and they arrived at the mansion.

“Welcommeee,” Pearl clumsily jumped out of the car, holding her hand out to help Marina, and Marina did the same to Eight, “to the Houzuki mansion.”

Eight gently shut the door behind her and turned to the home in front of them. It was gigantic. It must have been bigger than any dome at home.

“Come on in.”

Pearl led the way, taking Marina’s hand as they walked to the front door. “It should be totally empty today, so we can just chill out.”

Once inside, Eight was baffled. It seemed even bigger on the inside. Was there some kind of trick to it? She’d have to research that…

“We can give you a tour later, Eight, but right now I’m...exhausted,” Marina said, her voice laced with drowsiness.

“Your room is down the hall. Take a left and it should be two doors down from the library.” Pearl pointed down the long hallway.

Eight’s ears perked at the mention of a library, and she tried to contain her excitement, though her now-waving tentacles likely gave it away.

“You have a library? How many books? How big is it?”

Marina chuckled. “About as twice as many as Pearl’s movies, which is a lot.”

Pearl affectionately punched her girlfriend’s shoulder. “You only have so many because most movies are on the internet.”

The octoling reacted by wrapping her tentacle around the inkling’s wrist. “Yep.”

Eight cleared her throat to get their attention. Despite how much she wanted to see the library for herself, she also felt like she was going to collapse at any given moment. _I’ll check it out when I’m less exhausted. I have a lot to do, anyways._

“Ah, right, Eight, you should sleep.” Marina laughed, light and worn out. “We’ll wake you up later, but shout if you need us.”

“Make sure you’re really, really loud, because sometimes we get really —“

Marina’s tentacle slapped over Pearl’s mouth, and Pearl only reacted by wiggling her eyebrows at her girlfriend as if this was a common occurrence.

Eight brushed it off. She liked Pearl, but she was…interesting. She was definitely an inkling.

“Alright. Thank you two so much... For everything,” Eight yawned.

Pearl released herself from the younger octoling’s grasp. “Anytime, kiddo. Now get some shut eye.”

Eight obliged, making her way to the room exactly as she was told. _Down this hall, to the left, two doors down from the library…_

When she finally walked past the library, it took all her willpower not to run in and try to read whatever she could until she passed out. She only got a glimpse of the large shelves covered in different books and what looked like soft, melting chairs in the center of the room.

The agent looked away, entering the room the duo described to her instead. It was far larger than any room she had been in back home, sleeping quarters or not. While it didn’t seem heavily decorated, it had plenty of furniture, mirrors, and even a large television mounted to the wall. There was a large desk near the bed with plenty of room to work. There were even glass doors covered by curtains, leading to a small patio area. And, to Eight’s surprise, she even got her own _bathroom_.

Off the Hook really lived a life of luxury, Eight concluded.

In the center of the room was a large, round canopy bed with beautiful, sparkling curtains draping over it. The blankets and pillows were all patterned with flowers and vines, and something about it seemed so beautiful and welcoming to her.

She threw herself on it with a _pomf_ , and it was possibly the softest, most comforting bed she has ever had the honour of lying on. It felt like she was being engulfed by a loving cloud.

The octoling let herself sink into the mattress and drift off into a deep slumber, not caring about her current, heavy outfit and about getting under the covers.

 

* * *

 

She woke to a far off, familiar tune.

It was relaxing, really. Entrancing. Eight felt her body move towards the sound, to find it’s distant source. She couldn’t see what was in front of her, only the muffled song and the clicking of her own footsteps.

Wherever she was, there was a light in the distance. Eight found herself increasing her pace, and she swore the song ringing in her ears did the same. Her heartbeat joined in on the cluster of commotion, beating in her ears and making her stomach lurch. She reached the light, and it overwhelmed her vision. For a moment, all was white, and the music turned to ringing, painful static. When it finally stopped and all became clear, her heart dropped.

Agent Eight was back in the Deep Sea Metro.

She scrambled to stand, to run away, to do _something_ , but she found herself locked in place on the floor up against a wall of lockers at the end of the central station. There was no train, and the lights were almost dimmer than normal. All she could hear was her shallow breathing and distant _drip drops_ of leaking pipes. Her eyes fell on the shattered blender at the other side of the platform and she couldn’t keep her eyes off it, as though the blender would spring back to life and tear her to shreds on its own.

_Drip._

Eight tried to calm herself. _It’s just a nightmare, it’s just a nightmare. It’s fine._ She thought, over and over. _Maybe if I concentrate I can wake myself up._

_Drop._

She shut her eyes for a moment and opened them again. Nothing had changed, except for the sanitized octoling now standing at the end of the hall in front of the blender. She recognized her as Dedf1sh.

“You’re the…” Eight stuttered, trying to get up but only falling back on her butt and instead tried to make herself as small as she could. “You’re the octoling. The one from before, from the diner -”

The sanitized octoling began to take slow steps forward. The way she walked looked unnatural, as if something were holding onto her legs and she was trying to drag it as she moved. She looked as if she was going to trip, but managed to keep her balance. Eight couldn’t move. _She’s harmless, she’s harmless, she’s just a musician, why am I scared?_

And then she stopped in front of Eight, looking down.

“Uhm,” The agent sat up, trying to make herself look more confident. “H... Hello.”

The musician held her hand out and dropped something heavy yet small onto Eight’s lap. Eight froze, but the other octoling nodded, as if she was telling her it was fine. Eight felt she could trust her and sat up, crossing her legs to examine it. Meanwhile, the DJ  slowly lowered herself to the ground and sat next to the small agent.

Eight examined the gift between her claws. It was a golden metal piece of takoyaki on what looked like a toothpick. The object was incredibly detailed for its size and seemed to be made of real gold.

“Thank you, uh,” Eight turned her head a bit to her left, avoiding directly looking at the other octoling but still trying to seem polite. Dedf1sh was staring straight ahead of her. “Thank you for this. What is it?”

Dedf1sh nodded.

Confused, Eight turned back to the toothpick, rubbing the ball between her index finger and thumb. “What’s your name? I mean… your real name? Other than what the denizens call you.”

The DJ said nothing, but turned her head to look at Eight. The agent could feel her stare burning through her skin, but kept her focus on the toothpick.

“Do you not have one?”

She only kept staring.

Eight cleared her throat. “Ah I don’t really... Have one, either. So that’s alright.”

“Ahato.”

The agent nearly jumped and dropped the golden toothpick, surprised to hear a response from Dedf1sh. The other’s voice sounded raspy and broken, as if she hadn’t spoken in weeks.

“That’s a lovely name. Ahato...”

Ahato nodded and her gaze moved somewhere else, as if she was thinking intently.

“Strong.”

The DJ’s voice startled Eight once again, making her tentacles curl inwards.

“Strong?” Eight repeated.

“Means you’re... Strong.” Ahato choked out, and Eight raised a hand forward, wanting to put her hand on the other’s shoulder but not knowing if she was welcome to do so. The DJ’s voice sounded as if her vocal cords were damaged in some way or if her entire throat was damaged, making it difficult for her to speak more than one sentence. Eight also noticed that her voice seemed to have some kind of filter over it, as if others were listening to a poor quality radio.

“Strong? For what?” Eight tried to piece together what the other meant, but Ahato avoided her gaze. Eight tried to follow it, but with those glasses on she only ended up looking around the room, lost.

Her eyes set on the blender again. Beads of sweat began to fall from her forehead.

“Oh. I think I understand.” She rubbed the toothpick between her palms anxiously. Just hours ago she was inside that blender, about to be murdered. If it weren’t for Agent 3, she would have been dead.

She sighed. Her feelings for 3 were so conflicted. One part of her wanted to resent her, told her that she should, but her heart said otherwise. The inkling had done more good than harm, and even saved her life. And Eight had done the same in return.

She wanted to be angry,  to let that anger manifest, to be bitter and petty. But her heart said she was grateful, because the agent had helped her _escape_.

Eight rubbed her temples. “I went through hell, didn’t I?”

She felt a comforting hand on her shoulder now, and Eight understood it as Ahato’s way of saying ‘ _You did, but you’re alive now, and you made it._ ’ There was nothing wrong with receiving the help she did, and she did so much on her own, and she was so grateful for _everything_.

Her mind drifted to the other agent again, and how rude she felt she was before. While she wasn’t downright horrible, she had still let that petty resentment get to her

“I think I need to do something important.”

Eight lifted herself off the ground to stand, offering her hand to help Ahato do the same. Ahato got up steadily, trying her best to not lose balance.

The agent put the toothpick in her pocket. “Thank you for this, for all of this.”

Ahato nodded.

“Will you ever leave the metro, Ahato?” Eight grabbed the DJ’s hand and gave it a squeeze. Ahato looked up, seemingly shocked by the gesture.

She shook her head and squeezed back, a faint smile forming at the corners of her mouth. “It’s okay.”

Eight didn’t want to strain the other’s voice any more than needed and trusted her. “Stay safe.”

* * *

Eight woke with an agonizing headache, sunlight creeping through the windows. She couldn’t tell what time it is and, quite frankly, she wasn’t sure if she cared. She was drenched in sweat and her tentacles felt stiff, and so, so thirsty.

She rolled herself out of bed, careful not to fall on her face. The octoling blinked a few times, trying to adjust her eyes to the bright lights. On the bedside table she found a pair of pyjamas with a note on top, reading:

_Yo! We saw you fell asleep, with your heavy gear and everything. That’s not gonna be comfy to sleep in, change when you wake up._

__-Pearl & Marina ♥ _ _

 

Eight carefully placed the note next to the pyjamas and lifted them up to examine. They were softer than she expected, and rather thin to compensate for the heat. Paired with the thick blankets of her new bed, it seemed like comfort heaven.

She folded the pyjamas into her arms and trekked to the bathroom when something shiny caught her eye on her desk. Confused, she went to examine the object glittering in the evening light.

The toothpick from her dream.

The octoling’s eyes widened in surprise, and she picked it up, checking if it was real and she just wasn’t hallucinating. It was - it felt like the exact same light metal as before, coated in a layer of shiny gold that sparkled in the sun.

 _It must have been here when I entered this morning,_ she thought to herself. _I must have dreamed about it, then. That’s the only_ logical _explanation._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edit: Made some adjustments here and there thanks to my df <3 please read their stuff if you can, theyre kittydatefriend!  
> Thank you so much for the wait! I'm sorry this took so long, I was having trouble developing some things in the story and wanted to change things up before I continued and then a bunch of personal stuff came up. But here we are!  
> This took me almost a week to do, unlike the other chapters that only take a day of writing and another day of editing. There might be some mistakes here and there, so if you see a typo or something feel free to let me know!  
> Thanks for the read!


	5. Strung Up On the Heat of It

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow!! An update already?? YEAH!!  
> I've had this one in my head for a while and really wanted to get to it. It's a teeny tiny bit shorter than the others, and I'm not toooo proud of it writing wise, but I also really wanted to get it out. I did actually proprely proofread this time (and frostie helped!! Thank you sweetie) so if there's any mistakes let me know!  
> ALSO. I made some edits to the ending of the last chapter. I didn't really intend for this one to be 3 focused, but decided to make it that way anyways, so I had to make some edits to the last chapter because of that. It's just an extra scene at the end but if you've missed it please take a look!

The quietness of Octo Valley was much more eerie than Agent Three remembered.

It had been a few days since she came back from that metro hellscape and caught herself being coddled by her agent coworkers, but after finally catching up and getting actual sleep, she felt ready to get back in action.

Well, almost ready. While her fever was gone and she was almost ready to take those ugly face bandages off, she still felt off. She couldn’t put her finger on it, but something felt horribly wrong, as if something was taking her very soul and twisting it around in an attempt to suffocate her.

But of course, she crumbled all those feelings up and shoved them to the back of her mind where they belonged. Although she was directly ordered not to go patrolling the valley in her state, she decided to do it anyways. No grandpa or Squid Sister could stop her because she felt PERFECTLY FINE, thank you very much. Even if her tentacles were a little slimier than normal, it was no big deal at all - inklings just produce more mucus on their tentacles when they have a common cold. She’ll be fine with a little sunlight and exercise.

Three stood outside of a kettle entrance now, fumbling with her phone. No service - just as she expected. She decided against listening to any music for this patrol - she only wanted to check up on a few domes before going back to the cabin, and promised herself she’d at least avoid unwanted attention. Normally she didn’t think things through like this, since Cuttlefish and the other agents tend to guide her, but this time she settled on keeping things low just so she could see what’s changed.

Upon dropping into the kettle, it was completely quiet. The dome itself seemed fine and functioning, with its fake sky glittering above and objects floating about. Normally there was a distant tune, one that could easily be drowned out on her own, but she could still feel the vibrations in every step. But this time, it was dead silent, as she was accompanied only by the sound of her footsteps and the architecture adjusting itself with an occasional creak. There wasn’t even a drop of enemy ink in sight. It didn’t look abandoned, but it certainly didn’t look like enemy territory.

Agent Three decided she would have to be cautious either way. There had to be someone in the dome - they were never left completely vacant - but if there really wasn’t anyone here, there were bound to be some kind of camera hidden in the skies to track her every move.

...Or maybe she was just paranoid.

She ran towards the nearest piece of cover she could find just in case, changing her tentacles to match the grey pavement below her and give her some bit of camouflage. Unfortunately, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t get the tips to change from their glowing greenish colour - Three gave up quickly, reminding herself to try and fix it later.

She managed to hide any glowing parts with her cape wrapped around her as she maneuvered around the dome. _I probably look ridiculous right now_ , Three caught herself thinking, _But I told Callie and Marie the cape would be useful for_ something _. Even if this is a one time situation where there just happens to be no ink around me…_

An unfamiliar noise caught the agent’s attention, snapping her out of her thoughts.

_Scraaaaappee._

She paused, looking for the source of the noise.

_Scraaaaappee._

_Scraaaaappee._

The screetches stopped. Her heart beat drummed in her ears.

_THUNK._

Oh.

Three peeked over the edge of the platform she was on and saw a large piece of metal sinking into the water below. She shook her head, scolding herself for overthinking like that.

Three huffed. There were obviously no signs of life as far as she could see, so she pressed forward.

Until she heard talking.

It was faint, but she could still hear the distant octarian that spoke several yards away. Whoever was talking didn’t seem to care about who would hear as they went on and on and on - with only another voice chiming in with an agreement when the other went silent.

She decided to try and make her way closer without alerting them; she might not be able to understand octarian, but she knew a few words here and there, so it would be worth a shot to get whatever information she could. The agent slinked closer behind a crate until she could hear the voices clearly, but the louder octarian was talking too fast for her to understand.

Three peeked over her hiding spot, keeping as low as she possibly could while still trying to get a decent look at her enemies, who were fortunately facing the opposite direction. The source of the rambling was a young octoling, likely not much older than 15, with strange bright, excited tentacles that definitely didn’t match the standard octarian ink colour. The victim of the conversation was a taller, much older octoling, with black tentacles ending in red tips, but lacked any kelp of an elite. They both had standard Octo Valley octarian armour on, and to their sides stood one octo-trooper each.

Shuffling back, the inkling decided that it would be best to leave now. The octarians were no threat to her right now, especially if the only patrols they were sending out were chatty children.

Before she could make her way out, she caught a sentence from the older octoling — one that she was positive she could recognize — telling the younger octoling to check the area.

Three froze in place when she heard their discussion ease into silence, immediately followed by the sound of footsteps. She didn’t dare look out of her hiding spot in fear of being caught. She heard the boots approaching her and stop.

More talking between the octarians. Three gripped her gun, hoping she wouldn’t have to use it. The sound of boots stomping continued, and the agent shifted her ink colour to green to counter the bright pink octoling’s, holding her breath.

She scanned the area again - maybe she could just bolt for it, or super jump away… But no matter how she decided to escape, she would get caught anyway. All Three could do is pray that they didn’t find her. If this were a normal mission, Cuttlefish would have given her an idea…

Three held her breath when she heard a gasp that was far too close to her for her liking.

The bright tentacled girl was standing with her gun pointed towards her, shaking violently. Her face was completely pale, and Three noticed a bead of sweat fall down her cheek. The agent chuckled and stood up slowly, trying to make direct eye contact despite the goggles shielding the octoling’s eyes. Three kept her face as deadpan as she could, despite her own heart pounding in her ears.

_She’s scared of me,_ Three thought. _Why is she scared of me? I’ve never seen a soldier react this way before. I mean, I know I’m badass, but..._

The pink octoling shouted something, and the other responded from a few yards away. Three slowly reached for an autobomb from her inktank, keeping her eyes steady on the octoling in front of her, who was now preoccupied in a shouting match with her teammate.

Three saw the chance and took it, chucking the autobomb at the girls feet. The octoling screamed and darted away, tripping over her own feet as she barely evaded the bomb. The agent shot a few blotches of ink at the octoling’s feet as an attempt to stall her. The Octoling tried to escape, struggling as her foot was caught in enemy ink. It took a moment for her to realize it was thick and stickier than normal, causing her to recoil in disgust and scramble away, running in the opposite direction and yelling at her teammate.

The agent knew she could take the whole team down in just a few minutes if she wanted to, but recalling the terrified look on the young octoling’s face filled her heart with guilt. _Maybe they’ve always been afraid of me, I just never paid attention until now…_

She walk turned into a run, and she bolted as far as she could before even thinking about super jumping to safety. She heard the team of octarians shouting at each other again, this time louder from all parties joining in, and kept running until their voices were muffled and inaudible.

If that were the case, why was she only noticing these things now? Her mind drifted to Agent Eight, how scared she looked when they first ran into each other deep in the valley outskirts, how horrible she felt when the octoling got knocked out cold and limp (only to have the same fate follow herself not even a minute later), to how … _pretty_ , she looked on the rare occasions Three caught a glimpse of her from the metro security cameras.

_Don’t think of her like that,_ Three grumbled internally. _She might be pretty, and smart, and capable of kicking your ass and saving your life, but she’s just a really good looking octoling, and you’ll probably never see her again._

Agent Three cut off her own train of thought with a superjump, making her way out of the dome as quickly as possible.

* * *

“Calm down, now. Start from the beginning, Ceres.”

Four octolings were crowded in a small, dimly lit office. The room was only illuminated by the fake sunset out the window, giving it an orange and warm glow. One octoling sat behind a desk, another standing beside her, both appearing to be in their early twenties.

The other two sat on the other side, in chairs that look like they would crumble to the ground any second if they weren’t careful.

The younger of the two, Ceres, had completely white tentacles stuck curled inwards, inhaled and began to speak. The octoling behind the desk took notice. S _he must not be able to control her colours yet,_ she thought. _Strange. That must be why she was in such a small party._

“Thatcher and I were patrolling with Pyrrhos and Maude and I heard a noise and Thatcher told me to go and check and so I went to look around and then I heard more shuffling and smelled something funny and when I checked behind one of our crates I SAW A GHOST AND SHE WAS GOING TO KILL ME --”

The octoling sitting behind the desk raised an eyebrow, intertwined her fingers and leaned forward. “A ghost?”

Ceres’s teammate, Thatcher, spoke up with confidence, making eye contact - though the fear in her eyes ultimately betrayed her. “Yes, Captain Foli. It was Agent Three. She’s either alive, or…”

Ceres abruptly cut off her teammate. “SHE’S A GHOST AND SHE’S GOING TO KILL ALL OF US AND EAT OUR BRAINS I’M SO SC-”

Thatcher smacked the side of her head with her own tentacles. “Quiet, you.”

“What was that for?” The younger whined.

“Stop babbling like a helpless squishy. There’s a logical explanation. Ghosts aren’t real, it could have been any inkling. Maybe it was Agent Four and our eyes were playing tricks on us.”

Foli examined the two carefully. It was clear to her that whoever they just saw wasn’t Agent Four, especially because Four strictly patrolled the Canyon domes. But Agent Three was presumed to be dead three months ago, so what could it be?

Foli’s coworker sighed. “Anythin’ else ya’ll see? Did she try ‘n speak to ya?”

“She tried to shoot me,” Ceres cried. “She threw a bomb at me and her ink smelled horrible and was sticky and was glowing. It was _horrible_ and _disgusting_.”

“We’ll be sendin’ a search squad up in the dome to take a look at that. Hopefully it’ll still be there before sunrise.”

“Anything else?” Foli added. She reached into her drawers for a pen and some paper and wrote down everything that was previously described.

“No, ma’ams.” The two replied in unison.

“Alright, that’s all I reckon we need to know. Y’all are dismissed. We’ll be wantin’ answers from Pyrrhos and Maude later.”

Ceres’s ink colour shifted to a dull green, both of their tentacles unfurling. They left together without a word.

“And don’t tell anyone else what you saw, or no rations for a week!” The standing octoling concluded before they shut the door behind them.

Foli inhaled, burying her head in her hands. “Brooke.”

“Ah know.”

“Indre won’t be happy to hear any of this.” Foli dragged her claws down her face, sighing.

Brooke barked out laugh. “Of course she won’t. She thought she killed that wretched slug months ago, and everyone was convinced she did it to. You know what happens when her pride gets crushed.”

Foli felt a hand on her shoulder. “But we can get some answers outta this mess. Could lead us to all them missing troops, for one.”

octarians had been going missing for years; it was never anything new to them. If you dared wander off too far, you’d go missing. That’s simply how things were.

But after Agent Three defeated their king for the first time, the disappearances became more frequent, starting with Marina Iida. It wasn’t long before they were all declared dead, and it took even less time for the denizens of the valleys and canyons to assume Agent Three was kidnapping and murdering innocent octarians.

When their teammate, Indre, arrived one night claiming she killed the agent with nothing to prove other than a tattered cap, no one believed her for almost a month. It didn’t help her case that her own teammate had vanished just nights before, likely kidnapped and murdered by the inkling as well, but she claimed that she was killed by the agent in front of her and Indre was only avenging her.

It wasn’t until Agent Three stopped patrolling the valleys and a completely new agent taking her place in the canyon that the octarians began to believe her.

And now, Agent Three might possibly be alive.

“Maybe none of them are dead after all,” Foli whispered. “Maybe Agent Three had nothing to do with it.”

Brooke’s entire laid back demeanor faded in a second. “Don’t be ridiculous. That squid is a cold blooded killer, and the whole valley knows it.”

Foli sighed.

Her coworker crossed her arms and gazed out the window. “But… It’s worth lookin’ into, ah suppose.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: The chapter titles are derived from things i generally associate with the character who's the main focus of the chapter :] if you can figure out where they're from ily.  
> Hope you enjoyed this one, though! Please feel free to comment if you do, it's always appreciated ♥

**Author's Note:**

> Oh boy oh boy that was a ride!! I'm really happy with how this turned out.  
> If you have any feedback I'd really love to hear it, I've been working on this for weeks and I hope I can bring more soon! I also want to thank my datefriend, kittydatefriend, for helping me out a lot again and IPL for being so supportive. My twitter is also nastymajesty if you want to see a few updates here and there! Thank yall so much. ♥


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